Home is Where the Halisen Is
by Vorg
Summary: This is my first fic and I plan on making many chapters of this fanfic so i wont be going away anytime soon. Sousuke Sagara has blown up the apartment of Kaname Chidori unsurpringly Hilarity ensues. T for now, possible shift to M
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Panic!, or any of its subsequent spinoffs.

* * *

During WWII, when the Nazi air force, the Luftwaffe, came over Britain and bombarded the populace with all sorts of hell in attacks called The Blitz . Despite the use of incendiary bombs, high explosives, and eventually V-2 rockets, the people of Britain were prepared. They had air raid horns sounded as they approached, Anderson shelters to keep them safe, food stores, water, and wits. As a result of these preparations, the destruction of Britain and the loss of life was less than could have been.

Poor Sgt Sousuke Sagara never even had a chance to prepare against the full might of Kaname Chidori's shitstorm, all halisen and derisive, unequivocal fury.

He stood there, bruised, battered, with a gaunt look his eyes, and a pallor to his skin that made his usually dark complextion into a ugly pale white. To his credit he was able to stand perfectly at attention with his eyes set straight forward, the model of the near perfect soldier.

Kaname Chidori, meanwhile, was pacing back and forth in what used to be her living area and kitchenette, halisen in hand and had the air of something between a grizzled drill sergeant and a lioness deprived of food for a week, waiting for a chance to strike. Both images settled into the young sergeant's mind, forcing the young Mithril agent to gulp audibly, secretly wishing for a unit of Venoms to quickly overtake him.

On the other side of the mess, stood Sergeant Major Melissa Mao, and Sergeant Kurtz Weber, beside themselves in their best efforts not to fall to the floor laughing at the current situation.

"So babe, how long do you think till Angel beats the pulp out of Sousuke? I'm putting 50 on 2 minutes."

Mao, after a quick strike to Weber's gut, lights a cigarette and thinks for a moment.

"Please, your giving Kaname wayyyyy too little credit."

Melissa takes a large draw from her cigarette.

"30 seconds."

As the two shook hands in this most sacred pact, Kaname stopped her pacing about, and stood stark still for such a long moment that Sousuke, ventured to ascertain the target's current status.

"K-Kaname? Are you alright?"

Probably not the best choice of words at the moment, as Kaname turned toward the young soldier and fixed on him a glare that could kill.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK SOUSUKE?! DO YOU THINK IM ALRIGHT?! HOW ABOUT WE HEAR YOUR EXPERT OPINION YOU MILITARY MANIAC!?" She forced herself to breathe for a moment as she fumed.

"Alright then Ms. Chidori, I shall do as requested." Sousuke walked up to Chidori quickly and put a hand to her head taking a few moments to take stock of the situation. "Judging by your irritability, the volume of sweat running down your body from exertion, the coloration of your cheeks, and your exceptionally high temperature all indicate to me that you are in fact, not alright. I suggest we take you to a doctor immediately. You are most likely not in a proper frame of mind."

For that one brief moment, all was silent as Kaname Chidori began to process the words spoken by Sousuke. This silence broken only by Melissa Mao looking at her watch.

"Just 3 more seconds come on…."

T minus 2 seconds, Kaname Chidori raises her halisen, ready to unleash a torrential strike on her militaristic classmate.

T minus 1 seconds, beads of sweat form on Sousuke's face as he closes his eyes in preparation of the blow.

Liftoff, Sergeant Sagara is seen plummeting down a flight of stairs at the other end of the hallway leading to her apartment.

"HELL YEA! Pay up Kurtz." Melissa Mao held out her hand in front of her junior officer with her face glowing. Sighing, the ever snarky sniper handed over the 50 dollars.

"Yeah yeah, whatever. I should have known considering Kaname is basically always on the rag……."

Police would later find Sergeant Weber embedded in a piece of wall on a neighboring building.

_One hour later_

Sousuke Sagara, after trekking back up the stairs to Kaname Chidori's apartment, was at first about to be smacked out of the room again by Kaname, when noticing Sousuke's state of disrepair, relented and went on to instead lock on to Sousuke with her death glare.

"So, Sousuke, please, enlighten me, just how in the hell did **this** happen? I can't even imagine what caused you to overreact enough to blow up** MY** apartment.

"Uh………."

* * *

Authors Notes:

So this is what I hope to be the shortest chapter, and this is also my first work although I intend to make many more. Be honest, be cruel, be whatever, Im open to peoples ideas. I have set up many of my other ideas on the full metal panic forum, also a gantz one im hoping to make one day if anyone is interested in giving ideas about those as well feel free to drop a line :-).


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Panic

2 hours prior

About 10 minutes outside Tokyo, a lone AH-6J helicopter equipped with ECS Invisible Mode is carrying three members of the Urzu Squad to the home of one Sgt. Sousuke Sagara. At the time, Sgt. Sagara is sitting up, writing up a report on their recent mission in the communist state of Nicaragua, looking worse for wear. Their job had been to handle a AS manufacturing plant that was being funded by the communist party. The job had gone off smoothly until their ride was shot out from under them, and they were forced to trek from the edge of Puerto Sandino to Matagalpa, hitchiking where possible. Needless to say, the young Helmajistanian boy was afflicted by the environment. His two compatriots, Sgt Major Mao, and Sgt Weber are arguing the tactical advantage of having intercourse.

"I'm just saying babe, you'd have an all access pass to Pleasuretown, population: us. You wouldn't regret it." Kurtz gives Mao his most "charming" smile.

Mao smiles back seductively and gets closer to Kurtz. Thinking he hit paydirt, the young kraut goes in for the kill, as Melissa grabs him by his shirt and proceeds to hang him from the edge of the helicopter.

"I think I'll take a pass thanks. However I'm pretty sure if I drop you from here, you'll land right in the red light district. What do you think? You game?" Mao's smile turns into that of a cheshire cat as Weber proceeds to plead with his eyes for mercy.

"Come on sis, I was just playing, you know that, just a joke amongst comrades right?" He laughs nervously as they pass closely by the Tokyo Tower.

This fascinating discourse is interrupted by a fit of coughing, emanating from the steely grey-eyed Sousuke. Mao, with a frown on her face, tosses Weber bodily back into the confines of the helicopter as she goes over to her subordinate.

"You still got that flu you caught in Managua?" She checks Sousuke's forehead.

"Affirmative. However, it will not be a problem, I can still perform my basic duties guarding for Ms. Chidori." Sousuke quickly covers his mouth as another bout of coughing begins.

"Uh huh. And I ain't a alcoholic." Mao says derisively.

"Or a bitch either" Kurtz gets up to dust himself off, only to be hit with what could best be described as a near perfect right hook to the jaw. Melissa quickly sits back down next to Sousuke.

"Look, I know you think your tough as nails, but I'm gonna have to put my foot down on this one. When we get to Tokyo, we are dropping you off at your place, and your going to sleep this off. We'll pick up Kaname from school in the meanwhile. Is that understood?"

Sousuke, looking forlorn, stares at the ground and says under his breath "If it is an order, then yes."

Mao smiles to herself as she walks to the front of the helicopter. Kurtz decidedly sits next to his friend.

"Sis has a point you know, your lucky you didn't get malaria or something down there, but even still your a mess."

"That may be true, but it is still my duty to protect Kaname, I have done that adequately while in a state like this before." Sousuke hesitated to elaborate on that point.

This most likely because the last time he was sick resulted in a trek across the city of Tokyo for the sake of one notebook, leading to crazy cops chasing couples on tandem bikes, skittish taxi drivers, and causing a car full of people at the train station undue duress.

Weber sighs heavily at his stubborn comrade. "Geez, the way your so insistent on protecting Kaname, I gotta ask man, you two been bumping uglies?"

Sousuke, thoroughly confused thinks for a second. "I do not understand, is physical contact between physically unattractive people a common Japanese social event nowadays? Also, Ms. Chidori is, from what I can tell, not of that sort, so I believe the term would be considered illogical."

Kurtz shakes his head in a disappointed fashion. " It's a figure of speech. Buddy, you have been in Tokyo how long now? You gotta learn some basic terminology like that if your to survive there much longer."

"Understood, I shall ask Miss Chidori about this term when we return."

Kurtz chuckles to himself at that. "Oh please, please do."

"Hey guys, we're touching down in two minutes, get strapped in." Mao, returning from the front of the helicopter sits down in a seat in the front. Her subordinates quickly follow suit.

The helicopter lands on the roof of Sousuke's apartment. As the Mithril soldiers climb out of the helicopter they are treated to the sight of a bright Tokyo afternoon, all abuzz with activity.

"Alright then, Sousuke, we''ll see you in about an hour." says Mao.

"Mam, I feel that I can at least come with you to pick up Ms. Chidori." Sousuke says in a voice only half exuding confidence in this.

Mao stops a few paces from Sousuke.

"Sousuke, I thought you were smarter then that man. Oh well this should be fun." Kurtz proceeds to back up a few paces, all giggles as he waits for the impending beat down.

"Sousuke, that was an order, you will not argue with me on the point. I thought we made that clear?"

Mao taps her foot on the ground impatiently for Sousuke to reply.

"Affirmative mam, I will take a brief rest, after that I should be more than able to handle my duties."

"Good. Well then, come on Kurtz." As Mao starts to walk away, Kurtz starts yelling in a fit.

"Oh come on Mao, what the hell? How come you dont beat him up like you do me when I talk back to you?"

This quickly earns the German a swift kick to the groin, causing him to topple over where he stands. Mao then drags the huddled over form along with her to the staircase.

"Because, unlike you, he doesnt try to grope me, or disobey me often." A smile appears on her face.

"Besides, how can I be angry at an idiot who doesnt even get why he does the things he does for Kaname?"

* * *

A few minutes after Mao and Kurtz leave, Sousuke Sagara enters his small Tokyo apartment, sighing heavily as he does. He stops at the small unadorned stand that carries only the picture of his comrades around an old, beat up RK-92.

"I've returned." He goes toward the kitchen and gets himself a glass of water and a power bar. Feeling satiated for the time being, Sousuke heads toward his cot, when passing by the window pointing towards Kaname's apartment he stops short.

"It has been a few days, I should at least make sure that noone has tampered with the apartment. It's just a routine surveillence, it won't be a problem." He says all this to the air, as if trying to convince himself of the merits of disobeying Sgt Major Mao's orders.

Sousuke quickly gets himself situated at his desk, complete with listening equipment, and a pair of high powered binoculars.

"Well, I doubt there will be anything there anyways."

Oh how wrong the sickly sergeant could be.

"Hey, doesnt the girl get out from school in an hour?"

"Shit, good point, we better hurry and finish up, we don't wanna get yelled at again by the boss."

"Speaking of which, I have a little surprise set up for the girl, for getting all uppity because we hit on her, when she goes comes through the door, she's gonna be shocked out of her skin."

The men that had found themselves situated in Kaname's room began laughing, little knowing that Sergeant Sagara had sprinted out of the chair, gearing up with a Remington 870 MCS in Breeching weapon configuration, a pair of combat knives, a garrote, and a P220.

"Best if I grab the emp grenade."

Perhaps it was the flu getting to him, or it was just an off day, either way this one mistake sets up all that is to come. He grabs the satchel containing the frag grenades.

* * *

Sousuke runs at break neck speed to Kaname's apartment building, then past the elevator to the stairs, not noticing the two security company installers walk out from it.

"You gotta admit though you did deserve to get smacked by the girl, you took it a little too far."

"Yeah your probably right, but all thats gonna happen is the alarm going off, we gave her the default password so its not like its gonna cause much of an inconvenience. I'd doubt anyone would make a fuss over it anyway."

"Yea, she was kind of annoying, I suppose. Your still a bit of a perv though."

"Shut up already. Let's just go get some ramen"

The two men start laughing to themselves as they get inside the security company's van, without a care in the world.

* * * * * * * *

"This is Urzu 7 calling Urzu 2, come in Urzu 2." Sousuke is panting heavily due to the physical strain caused by the upward climb and his sickness.

"Urzu 7, what is the situation? And I thought I told you to stay at your current position?!"

"I apologize madam, however, I noticed some suspicious looking men were in Chidori's apartment, it sounded like they were setting something up, my final analysis: its a bomb."

"A BOMB?!" This time both Mao and Kurtz could be heard on the line, with the faint sound of a young woman yelling in the background.

"Do not worry, I should be able to handle this quickly. I have the EMP grenades on me, I shall use it to quickly deactivate the bomb. We shall replace all equipment tampered with by the grenade. It is not a problem."

"SOUSUKE!!"

The line quickly cuts off. Shrugging, the young sergeant finally reaches Kaname's floor. Sousuke walks slowly down the hallway, P220 in hand, another in the satchel holding (what he thinks are) the EMP grenades. Sousuke attempting to take a deep breath, begins to cough sporadically.

"I won't let some cold stop me from my duty."  
He kicks down the door, to the sound of alarms going off. Blocking out the sound, he tosses in the grenade, hoping for the best.

The grenade lands in the kitchenette area, next to the stove. Seconds pass, Sousuke now at the other end of the hallway, begins slowly walking back to assess the situation. The grenade goes off, blowing up the gas stove, which starts a series of chain reactions.

Sousuke walks into the aftermath, looking at the wreckage, then back at his bag.

"This is bad, this is very very bad. I believe the proper term is FUBAR for this sort of scenario."

"Yes Sousuke, your right, this situation is certainly FUBAR. For you."

Sousuke turns around, feeling his end slowly draw near.

"Chidori. I just want you to know I was working in your best interest."

THWACK

* * *

Authors Notes:

Im pretty sure that there are no such things as EMP grenades, but then again neither are ECS Invisible modes. :-).


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

I do not own Full Metal Panic, or any of its subsequent works

* * *

_Present time_

The tension inside Kaname's former apartment was palpable to say the least. There stood the captivating Kaname Chidori, all bluster and rage, preparing for the ritual killing of her favorite military maniac.

Sousuke, at best, took on the appearance of a deer staring into the headlights just before the truck smashes into it, brain matter, blood, and teeth all smashed together and splattered across the ground.

"So, let me get this straight. You thought that the men leaving my apartment were people intent on taking my life?" Kaname looked into Sousuke's eyes with a vicious intent.

"Yes, this is correct, you can never be too careful." Sousuke, feeling he answered the question adequately starts to sweat a bit less.

_Hm, to be honest I'm not too surprised. If I had known he was getting back today I would have at least warned him about the security company._

"And you decided to toss what you thought was a what into my apartment?" The anger begins to rise in her throat again.

"An emp grenade Chidori. They are of high grade, recently devoloped my Mithril's own R&D department, and is capable of taking out electronic equipment within a....."

Sousuke is cut short as he slapped bodily into the ground at Kaname's feet.

"LIKE I CARE YOU FREAK!"

"Chidori, that hurt." Sousuke slowly raises himself from the ground and dusts himself off.

"OH IM SORRY IF THAT HURT SGT! BUT GUESS WHAT I DONT HAVE A PLACE TO SLEEP TONIGHT!!" Kaname, on the verge of tears lowers her head, distraught.

Sousuke also drops his head in shame.

"Kaname I..."

"JUST SAVE IT! Its not like your ever going to change, I should expect as much. I only asked those guys to install the alarm system because I thought it would help your job a little, you idiot. AND NOW LOOK AT THIS! My home is gone. My books, my clothes, my pet hamster! YOU BASTARD!!!!"

Kaname drops down to her knees and begins to sob uncontrollably. Mao crouches down and holds her close, consoling her.

Sousuke takes this moment to collapse to the ground, exhausted.

"Sousuke?" Chidori, stifling her cries, carries herself over to Sousuke, and feels his forehead.

"He's burning up! Mao, what the hell happened to him?" She begins to dote on him, checking his temperature, and resting his head on her lap.

Mao kneels down next to the two high schoolers and feels her subordinates forehead. "Figures the idiot would leave an important part out of the story. Back on our last assignment, the Sergeant caught a bad bug down in Nicaragua, and he hasn't really been able to get over it just yet. We told the idiot to rest but you know how he is when it comes to protecting you."

Kaname begins to turn red at hearing this. Very red.

"Ohhh, what this? Is our Angel having devilish thoughts about Sousuke? Since he's out cold its ok babe you can practice on me!"

Kurtz, just entering through the door is quickly found exiting just as quickly, but not before dropping a pink ball. Kaname notices this and picks it up.

"My hamster! Where did you find him Kurtz?"

Kurtz drags himself into the room again, looking worse for wear.

"Yeah your welcome. After you hit me earlier I ended up down on the street. When I was walking back to the apartment building I found this little guy stuck inside the branches of that big tree outside. Little guy is out cold, but its alive. He's real lucky."

Kaname hugs the young German and walks back over to Sousuke.

"So should we take him to a hospital?" Kaname asked.

"Nah, at this stage he'll be fine, trust me, just gotta get him some rest at his place. Maybe you should tag along since well........"

Mao looks around the former apartment sheepishly.

"Hmm, alright. Besides, just because he's sick right now doesn't mean he won't pay for this later."

Kaname begins twirling the little hamster ball in hand, and laughing maniacally as the two conscious Mithril operative drag Sousuke away with sweat drops.

_I thought I was a bitch to training recruits. I could learn from this girl._

_I don't care how hot she is, I'm glad I didn't get saddled with this crazy woman._

* * *

Mao opens the door to Sousuke's apartment and walks inside warily. Kurtz, close behind carrying his comrade over his shoulder does likewise. Kaname meanwhile looks around with curiosity.

_Come to think of it, the only time I think I've been in here was during that A21 incident._

Kaname clenches her fists and gnashing her teeth at this.

_Also come to think of it, that was when I caught Tessa in his bath. HIS BATH!!! OOOH I SHOULD HAVE KILLED HIM RIGHT THEN!!!!!_

"Uh Kaname?"

Mao sticks her head out from the bathroom area to stare at Kaname, who is currently sporting a manic glare in her eye, a fist half embedded in Sousuke's wall, and a throbbing head vein to make any man jealous. Catching herself, Kaname puts on a normal expression and begins to surreptitiously laugh it off.

"Its fine Melissa don't worry about me, I'm just thinking is all."

She makes a "shoo shoo" motion with her hand. Mao, shrugging, comes out of the bathroom with a bucket of water and a wash cloth in hand. Kaname, noticing this, follows Mao into the living area and to Sousuke's cot.

When she looks down at Sousuke's sleeping form she finds her eyes glued to him, fascinated.

The first thing she noticed (she hated to admit) was his muscles. Muscles layered with muscles. The kind of muscles that makes all the ladies swoon, herself included. The muscles themselves were lean in nature, not anything like the packed on muscles the competitors had, but just enough. The shoulders were broader than she would have imagined, which ran to his stomach to a six pack, his arms too were sculpted. Even his neck packed some muscle.

She also noticed the scars. Apart from his distinguishing facial scar, she never took the time to notice the rest of them, despite the few occasions where she had seen him shirtless. They were numerous all around his chest, his sides, and one in particular, in the place where he had a piece of glass embedded in his side during the Khanka incident. The memory of that time made her shiver, but not for long. She realized that in fact, Sagara was the one who was shivering. Sweat covered his body in a sheen, his body quivering like a small child in fright, and he had a unhealthy flush to his cheeks.

"Shit, he's worse off than I thought, Mao, maybe you should wipe off his body. I'll go see if there is any medicine here for him." Kurtz gets up and with a wink to Kaname and Mao, heads off in search of Sousuke's first aid kit.

Before Mao has a chance to put the cloth to Sousuke, Kaname shouts out "HEY! Wait, let me do it. I feel kind of bad for yelling at him (even though he deserved it.)" Kaname is playing with her hair and looking away as she says this. Mao grins evilly and shrugs as she hands the cloth to Kaname.

"Sure, here you go, be sure to use it well." As she gets up she whispers into Kaname's ear, "You know that towel is fresh so feel free to wash him _**all**_ over."

As Mao walks away laughing crazily, Kaname can only look down red as a tomato, with her chest pounding away profusely.

"Like I'd do that. Geez, what the heck does she take me for...."

Her eyes wander down to the Sergeant's pants.

"NOOOO!! NO! NO! NO!!"

With each no, another slap to the face is made. Whimpering from the self inflicted pain, she slowly lowers the hand holding the cloth to Sousuke's chest.

_Come on come on, your only doing this because he's sick, and nothing else. Yeah, that's it, he's sick, and it's your job as a classmate to make sure he lives. Long enough for me to kill him for wrecking my place. Yeah yeah, your such a smart and kind girl Chidori. Really philanthropic for taking care of this idiot._

As she wipes the sweat from Sousuke's chest, she looks into his face.

"This idiot...." she says slowly under her breath. She begins to smile a little.

_Well, at least he was trying to protect me. That has got to count for something right? Maybe I should cut him a bit of a break._

She sighs heavily. "Even still, what the hell am I going to do for sleep tonight? I doubt Kyouko or the others will be able to hole me up, and my savings were destroyed in the explosion, so no hotel....."

"You should spend the night here, Kaname" A voice says from the bed.

"Hm, yeah I should spend the night here, I can just camp out in the living room."  
"Negative, you should take the bed, I sleep under it anyways, I can watch your back better this way."  
"Yes, yes what a brilliant idea Sou......." She stops mid sentence, with a look of shock and annoyance on her face.

Sousuke's eyes flutter open and she stares into Kaname's blue orbs.

"Kaname? Is something the matter?"

She sputters and blushes at this. "No, no, nothing is wrong. But suggesting that a man and a woman stay under one roof, don't you think that is a bit bold? I mean, we're just classmates and I don't want to give off a loose impression...." She blathers on for a minute still twirling her hair, blushing and looking away.

"It is not a problem, practicality is what matters here."

The sound of bone breaking is perhaps the most appropriate the sound for this moment, as Kaname becomes speechless, the silence filled with a killing intent. The last time those words were muttered, her classmates and Sousuke had to endure a flash bang going off.

"Oh, practical, is it? I see, how very smart of you Sousuke..."

Just before the cloth is slapped in Sousuke's face she stops, only to find his eyes closed again, the pallor in his face as gaunt as ever.

"Its not a bad idea you know Kaname."

Kaname startled turns around, to find Mao back in the room grinning again.

"Sorry, couldn't help but overhear. Feed him the medicine would you?"

She tosses the water bottle and bottle of medicine to Kaname. She fumbles momentarily with them, and proceeds to feed him the medicine.

"How is it in any way a good idea? Can't imagine the stares I'd get from people walking out of Sousuke's apartment every day. Plus he's a **guy**, you can't trust them in the same room with you, they are all a bunch of a perverts! "

"Honey, do you honestly think we'd let civilians live here without paying them off to keep their mouths shut? Besides, you know Sousuke wouldn't do anything weird."

Mao looks at Kaname who looks a little depressed after hearing this.

"Or maybe that's why, you **want** him to do something weird?" She laughs heartily at this.

"W-what are you stupid? As if! Like I'd let that pervert do anything with me!"

"Uh huh, sure. Still though look at it this way, do you really have any options?"

Kaname loosens up at this.

_Its true, given the choices, its either stay here, or go back to America with dad and sis. Crap._

"No, I guess not. But what about my apartment?"

Sousuke begins coughing heavily at this.

"Sousuke?!"

Kaname and Mao walk up next to the sickly sergeant who is still half awake.

"Chidori, do not worry, I have plenty of money saved away, I will personally see to the repair of your living quarters, until then, I would feel most comfortable with you staying here, with me."

Sousuke, almost unnoticabley turns a slightly redder shade. Kaname smiles uncontrollably at this.

"With you huh? Alright then, I guess I'll give it a go then." She chuckles a little.

"Well, in that case, we'll be going. Kurtz and I are getting picked up at the roof in about five minutes, so I hope you two get along well. Call me if you have any trouble okay?" She sticks out her tongue playfully at Kaname as she leaves.

"W-wait your leaving us two all alone **already**? Surely you can spend the night?"

Kaname is grasping at straws at this point.

"Hehe, no can do, don't want to disturb the two lovebirds in the throes of their passion do we babe?"

Kurtz sticks his head in and turns his head to his superior officer.

"Too true, Kurtz, too true. Well then you two have funnnn. Oh, right, I left some alcohol here for you in case your feeling **indecisive**."

Mao puts her hand to her mouth and laughs in a snooty fashion. Kurtz takes the less dignified approach of laughing insanely at Kaname and Sousuke's expense.

"B-b-but...."

Too late. Kurtz and Mao have left the building. Kaname, left a quivering mess, turns to Sousuke, who is still half dead. She concedes defeat and sits on the edge of the bed next to him. Noticing how tired she is she lays her head next to his own, a small smile splayed across her face.

_This shouldn't be too bad. It's only Sousuke. Besides, remember you can kill him easier this way once he's better._

"Goodnight Sousuke."

Without realizing it she snuggles close to him.

"Goodnight Chidori."

She turns off the one light and begins to drift off to sleep.

Before falling asleep however, Sousuke stirs momentarily, seeing Kaname is still barely awake.

"Um Chidori, I've been meaning to ask, what does bumping uglies mean? Also, if it is a wholesome activity, I was thinking it would be best if we participate in it together, I gather you would have much to teach me."

Silence

"Um, Chidori?"

THWACK!!!!!!!

* * *

Author's Note:

Woohoo, excitement. Sorry for taking so long to finish this chapter up, been busy with life. I should have another chapter out in a few days. I hope to get some more reviews soon, and hope you all enjoy it. I know I'm no dave-d or Mika when it comes to good FMP stories, but I hope its interesting enough.

Please be honest in reviews, I'd like to hear all comments and complaints so I can improve the stories some.

Also, I assume you all got it, but the italics are for people's thoughts. Intend to keep it that way.

If I make any mistakes with stuff like military equipment or martial art techniques for future chapters feel free to inform me in your review.

Basically please please please review! :-)


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

I do not own Full Metal Panic

* * *

_Several hours later, at 0600 hours_

Tokyo even this early in the morning is always a flutter with activity, an unchanging fact as time moves on, people waking up to go to work, shops opening and tourists who refuse to let the good times end. All of these noises and distractions at this moment would be unable to wake to sleeping form of Kaname Chidori.

Still in her school clothes from the previous day, she slept peacefully on her bodyguard's shoulder, without a care in the world.

Sousuke Sagara, waking up from a long slumber, notices Kaname, and slowly moves out of bed, replacing his shoulder for a real pillow for Kaname to snuggle against.

"Alright, time to begin morning preperations."

Sousuke turns on the light in his living area, to find Kaname's bag, and pet hamster (now fully awake) rolling around aimlessly. He takes the ball containing the small mammal and puts it in his kitchen sink so it had nowhere dangerous to roll into. Seeing this, the young sergeant begins his daily morning workout routine.

* * *

(inside the dreams of Kaname Chidori)

There she was again. The same old dream as before, the school in a total uproar, her heart going a lightyear a minute, the world spinning, as her friends become subjected to the Full Monty Virus, there she sits naked as a jaybird behind the curtains of the bed in the nurse's station. The only thing in front of her is Sousuke.

"S-Sousuke, you still haven't said why I-I-I need to take off my clothes, I mean, I just don't think I'm ready."

Sousuke moves closer to the bed, only the thin sheeting protecting him from the view of Kaname's naked form.

"We don't even have any......protection."

She felt like her was about to explode, as Sousuke continued to stare intently into her eyes from the other side of the curtain.

"It's not a problem."

The curtain is flung open.

(end of dream)

THWACK

"OW!" Kaname finds herself on the floor, a large welt on her head from landing from the top of the bed. She is still only half awake in spite of this, vaguely recalling the dream, causing a deep blush to develop.

_Figures the dream would end there........again. Usually its my alarm clock that ruins that moment._

She stands up slowly to take stock of herself. The first thing she notices unfortunately was the usual wetness that comes from that particular dream. Needless to say the blush on her face only deepened.

DAMMIT! JUST WHEN I DONT HAVE A CHANGE OF UNDERWEAR!! HOW THE HELL AM I SUPPOSED TO EXPLAIN THIS AWAY!?

Underwear situation aside, the young high schooler's uniform was also in a state of disarray, all wrinkled from a long nights sleep. Then she noticed the bed.

"Sousuke? Where did that otaku run off to?" All this is muttered under her breath, as she teeters over to the living room in search of shower to keep her cool and bring her to a state of alertness. She found a lone towel for herself and continued on her way to the bathroom, not registering that Sousuke was nowehere to be seen in the living room either.

_If that pervert tries to peek in on me he will pay. That damned military maniac!_

Her thoughts ran short as she opened the door to the bathroom only to find Sousuke at the sink shaving, his body completely naked. Kaname admittedly stares on, while Sousuke looks bemused.

"Chidori? The bathroom is currently occupied, you might wish to leave."

Perhaps it was because she was still in a daze from just waking up, but this was one request she could not follow right away. Not before she got a **good** look. The scars and muscles from yesterday went unnoticed, as her eyes traveled southward.

_Woah. Clearly the dreams never did him justice. Woah._ _Wait, why am I turning into the pervert here!?_

What was once a healthy red of embarrasment blemishing Kaname's cheeks turned into a deep dark color filled with rage, as she took a swing at the ever clueless sergeant. Unaware that the swing caused her to slip she went plummeting to the ground, Sousuke following quickly behind her to cushion her head.

With his lap.

"Chidori? Chidori? Are you all right? Should I take you to a doctor, please respond!"

_This is has got to be some weird dream right? Total deja vu, I remember something similar from that hospital visit. At least he cares. Wait, whats that feeling on the back of my neck? _

She begins to wake up a little as she realizes Sousuke is still naked.

_OH MY GOD!!!_

"You-you-you........TOTAL PERVERT!!!"

To her credit she could not get the full power behind her uppercut from laying down, regardless, to Sousuke's credit, he only had a quarter of his head embedded in the ceiling.

"K-Kaname, good your ok."

"Just get out of the bathroom I need to shower now! God, show some decorum, there is a woman here you know."

"Yes that would be best."

Sousuke extricates himself from the ceiling, grabs his towel and razor, and heads out into the main area, while Kaname undresses. She looks down at her school clothes, and notices a change of clothes left by Sousuke, mainly a pair of weathered pants a size too large and a dark green t shirt.

_I'm still going to have get a new pair of underwear after this. _

She steps into the shower turning the water on to the highest heat possible.

_God this sucks. Why the hell is this happening now? I am not ready for this at all. Shouldn't I be more angry with him? I mean he destroyed my home, thoroughly embarrased me, made my school life complicated, and my whole life has gone upside down. So why am I so........happy? _

* * *

Sousuke meanwhile outside in the living room found another pair of clothes to put on, preparing for the day. He began by disassembling his P220 and cleaning each individual part meticulously.

_The situation is dire right now, I am sure Kaname will not let any of the past two days slide, possibility of retribution by the enemy force, 100 percent. Possible countermeasures? Every time I have done things for Kaname I generally have it backfire. The necklace and earrings in particular were a traumatizing experience. Giving weaponry to her has proven to be a terrible idea. Perhaps protective gear would suffice. This is most troublesome._

As Sousuke began to reassemble the P220, Kaname walked out of the bathroom wearing the clothes Sousuke had left for her. Noticing this, Sagara audibly gulped.

Two things immediately jumped out at him. First, that the shirt and pants fit to her form a little better than he would have liked to admit. Second, that Kaname did not have a bra on. These two stipulations made the specialist sweat. The two just stood there looking at each other, both unmoving, both projecting less than savory images in their brain, both unsure of what to do next. The silence ended when Kaname's cellphone went off in her bag.

"I better get that." Kaname said sheepishly.

"Um yeah, you better. I'll just be finishing up here." Sousuke pointed nervously at the half assembled pistol.

Kaname moved over to grab her cellphone and saw the caller id for Kyouko. She sweatdropped as she answered the phone in what she hoped was her best cheery voice.

"Hey there Kyouko, what's up?"

"Kaname! Since it's Sunday I was wondering if you wanted to go the movies or shop or something. You could bring Sousuke along."

The wink wink nudge nudge was so obviously telegraphed that Kaname didn't even bother to take note of it. She looked nervously at her present state of affairs.

_Yea like I'm going to go hang out wearing Sousuke's clothes, that would bring a whole new realm of awkwardness into my life. She'd probably think we......we......_

Kaname began twiddling her thumbs as she stole glances at Sousuke, who had moved on to polishing his Winchester riot dagger.

"Um, no can do Kyouko I have other things to do today, errands and stuff."

"Is that so? Your not meeting Sousuke behind my back are you?" Kyouko said as slyly as humanly possible.

"Pfft please, like I'd do that. Hahahaha." She laughs maniacally while Sousuke looks on confused and at a loss.

"Look I'll see you next week Kyouko for all that stuff ok? I'll even pay for lunch."

"Hmm......ok. You better keep your word."

"I will I will don't worry." She hangs up the phone and sighs.

"Chidori. I suggest that we go and get you some new clothes, as you will be staying here for the duration of the repairs. I shall accompany you, and I have no problem buying as much as is needed."

Kaname stands there for a second thinking it over.

"Hmm, ok then why not. Let's head out now. No guns, no knives, no exception. Got it?"

"Understood." Sousuke tucked a line of piano wire in his pocket to be safe.

"Good, then let's go get some breakfast Sergeant." She holds open the door for Sousuke, which the two go through, the start of a long Sunday out.

* * *

Authors note:

Surprise surprise another chapter up in two days. This is to make up for a week of inactivity. Not much happened here, but that's kinda the point to set up the oh so evil things to come. Mwahahahaha.

Anywho, please send in reviews if you wish. Also, I am thinking of 2 stories I wanna do when this one is up and not sure which to concetrate on. One is a FMP/Black Lagoon crossover, the other is a FMP/Darker than Black. When you review also mention which one you'd rather see. When this story is done (it'll be a while) I'll tally em up and go from there.

I'll use the underlining for telephone calls and things of that nature for future reference.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

I do not own Full Metal Panic

Tokyo is without a doubt a bustling metropolis, filled with many people of all types. This is perhaps one of Sousuke Sagara's least favorite things about working as a bodyguard to a Tokyoite. This discomfort appears easily on his face as he traverses the street side with his charge, Kaname. As they pass by a convenience store, Sagara notices an old woman walking out with some bags, and a hand inside her purse.

_Relax, there is no danger here at the moment. The old lady is just reaching into her purse to grab her wallet no doubt. The chances of it being a silenced pistol is minimal at best. Yes that is surely the more likely case. There aren't too many cases of elderly people actually being killers or terrorists, if you discount the Copeland couple, or Albert Fish...surely I'm just be overly cautious...perhaps I should check, just a peek into her bag..._

"Don't even think about it Sousuke."

"Ch-Chidori?"

"Sousuke you couldn't be more obvious if you were shouting out your thoughts. Either that or you have a thing for senior citizens."

She begins chuckling to herself at the idea of Sousuke amongst a pack of ravenous senior women.

_And so the daydream begins._

"_Stand back ladies, you don't want to be in the line of fire."_

"_Oh no sergeant, but we **want** to be in your line of fire."_

_Titters and a dog pile of old flesh on scarred sinew ensue_

"_You remind me of my husband."_

"_Ladies, I request that you remove your hands from my pants this instant! I will not be able to react appropriately to a situation like this."_

"_Oh but don't worry, **we** certainly can."_

"_Young man is this gun loaded?"_

_cue daydream end._

The laughter takes a long time to die from Kaname, Sousuke standing on, holding piano wire still in his hand.

"I do not understand, what do you mean by **thing**? That I show an interest in them? If so then yes I do."

"Wh-what now?"

"I show an interest in everyone Kaname."

Kaname just stood there staring at the sergeant for a moment, thoroughly disgusted, the image of the senior horde still fresh in her mind, giving her a backlash of imagery.

Sousuke, his usual oblivious self, continues on.

"When working as a bodyguard you must have an interest in everyone that passes by. Men or women, child or senior, everyone of every race, every religion, the fact remains that you must keep a keen eye on all possible threats. Everyone is a ticking time bomb ready to be neutralized."

Kaname sighs to herself heavily.

"I don't know whether to hit you or be relieved that you didn't turn into some sort of sexual deviant."

"What is that?"

"Never mind. Let's just hurry up or we'll miss the train to Shibuya."

"Affirmative."

_1100 hours, Shibuya district, Tokyo._

Shibuya is a well known shopping district in Tokyo, that caters often to the younger crowds. Kaname and Sousuke find themselves in front of a restaurant called Good Honest Grub, a western brunch style restaurant.

They walk inside, and get themselves seated. Kaname orders a plate of french toast with strawberries on top, Sousuke orders a plate of bacon,eggs, hash browns, and toast. As they sit there drinking their coffee, an awkward silence has developed.

"S-Sousuke?"

"Yes, what is it Kaname?"

"Oh, I was just wondering, about this whole apartment thing, I mean I know you said you could cover the repairs and everything, but I mean..."

"Ah, you are worried about my financial stability? It's not a problem. Repairing the damage from your apartment and other lost assets will only take a small portion of my savings."

_After recovering from the recent failure of the bonta kun mass production that is._

Kaname sits there, mouth agape, not knowing how to take that information.

_A **small** portion? How the hell much do they pay Sousuke?_

"Is-is that so? Boy Mithril sure must pay well."

"Yes they certainly pay most generously. I must admit it took some time to get used to that."

"What do you mean?"

Sousuke takes a strip of bacon and begins chewing as he thinks for a moment.

"Well, to be quite frank, all my life combat has been a part of my everyday routine. Growing up in "the shit" as several of my comrades called it, was just the way things were. You fight to survive, or you die like a dog. No other comforts was needed, apart from a piece of meat to gnaw on, and a safe place to sleep."

With this, Sousuke goes back to his meal, while Kaname looks down at her plate forlorn.

_Nice going Kaname, you idiot. All this effort to turn today into a nice outing and you go and bring up a subject like that? God, what the hell am I doing? _

"Sousuke?"

"Yes Chidori?"

"I'm sorry for bringing that up, and making you remember something so unpleasant."

Sousuke, looking confused, lowers his fork and looks into Kaname's eyes.

"I do not see the issue."

"How can you not see that? Doesn't all that stuff you used to deal with bother you?"

"Why should it?"

"What do you mean why should it? Doesn't remembering all that stuff bother you at all? I mean I know your practically emotionless but this is just ridiculous!"

"Kaname!"

Sousuke lets out in a loud, authoritative tone. So shocked was Chidori that she lowers her head like that of a scolded child.

"It is true that life before Mithril can be considered tough to handle, but the reality of the situation is all that I have done to get to this point is inconsequential now. Survival, Ms. Chidori, is what matters most, and since I have properly prioritized just that, to dwell on memories long gone will only reduce my performance as a soldier."

Kaname takes this moment to sink even lower into her chair.

_UGHHHHH I'm doing it again! I apologize then get mad at him, God I'm getting more bipolar by the minute. And since when does Sousuke scold me? Damn that military otaku! Only you can make me feel so stupid!_

"I see...I apologize again Sousuke."

A small grin appears on Sousuke's face.

"It's not a problem, after all I did destroy your home, and I am forcing you to live with me."

Kaname brings her head back up at this, a smile splayed across her face.

"Alright then, we'll call it even."

"Understood."

"Ok then, we better hurry up sergeant, we have a long day of work ahead of us."

"Yes mam!"

They go back to eating, Sousuke a look of determination on his face, to finish eating quickly, Kaname content to look at the strange sight of Sousuke so serious about eating, only picking at her own food.

_Yep, only this idiot can make me feel like one too._

_1200 hours, Shibuya district of Tokyo._

After a hearty breakfast, Sagara and Chidori traverse the streets of Shibuya to end up at a department store known as Shibuya 109, located across from the train station.

The shopping center had a amusing effect on both teenagers.

_Inside the mind of Kaname_

_Alright, it's time to look so damn good that even Sousuke will blush! Oh I can't wait to see that!_

_Inside the mind of Sousuke_

_How is it all these clothing items are so expensive? It's like they are not even trying to camouflage you or optimize defense. Is it all for the sake of optimizing movement? But surely there are better polymer weaved fabrics that do just as much. This warrants further investigation._

"Sousuke? You coming?"

The sound of Kaname's voice ceases Sousuke's unusual train of thought.

"Hm? Yes of course."

They head up to the 3rd floor and end up in a trendy female clothing store. The air thick with perfume, Sousuke, almost unwillingly, trudges along behind Kaname, who is aglow with desire and reckless abandonment (for clothes). She eventually settles upon a section obviously designed for women with...lets call it curvaceous body types. This is something that immediately becomes apparent to the young sergeant as he notices a couple near the changing rooms, the female wearing a tank top that left little to the imagination, and shorts even less so.

_Inside the mind of Sousuke part 2_

_This woman is not seriously considering buying those items is she? There is no protection whatsoever. Although the way that top is pushing up her chest it **is** possible to hide a knife in there. Sgt Major Mao does that from time to time. Perhaps I should ask this young woman about the matter in further detail._

Before Sousuke takes a single step in the woman's direction, Kaname swiftly grabs Sagara from behind.

"Sooouske." She draws out in her lovingly sarcastic tone.

"Yes Chidori?"

"Where were you going and for what purpose? Better question, why were you staring so intently at that girl?"

The venom is dripping from her mouth for all intents and purposes at this point.

"Don't get me wrong I wont get mad. No, no, that's just crazy, you can go ahead and tell me." The smile on her face showing little of her murderous intent. The laugh however a series of short repetitive and obviously forced titters, put the sergeant in an uneasy position.

_Think Urzu 7, how can I resolve this situation? Perhaps it will be better to tell her the truth._

"Well I was going to ask that woman as to if she hides anything in her chest."

Before finishing the sentence, Sousuke Sagara knew he was doomed.

"What?" The vein on Kaname's head makes it appearance once again.

"As I said..."

Fight to the last man is apparently a saying Sousuke takes to heart.

"NEVER MIND!" Kaname yells as she hits Sousuke down to the ground with her trusty halisen. A loud thud reverberating throughout the store.

"_Shit. I did it again. I need to figure out a way to hurt him more discreetly. At least for out in public. I need to research this." _

Kaname turns around in a huff. "Just hurry up and follow me, your only duty today is to carry my shopping bags and tell me I look good. Got it?"

_Did I just say that? Dammit!_

"Understood." he says as he picks himself off the floor gingerly, clearly the last blow having hurt more than he initially anticipated.

Chidori smiles to herself, a little redness in her cheeks, as she passes through the different areas of the section, passing by tank tops, skirts, and form fitting jeans, to end up in a section of infamy for Kaname. Her eyes travel across the different one pieces and bikinis, a distant look in her eyes as she remembers that fateful day at the beach, involving assassins from the French Foreign Legion, crazy incestuous children with constipation problems, and a grandiose feeling of discontent on the part of Kaname.

_I need to keep my cool today, I **will **find a bathing suit this time that will make Sousuke finally grow a pair! If not, I can always beat him within an inch of his life, I can pick up a few new tools to torture with then. Yea just you watch Sousuke your in for it now!_

Not realizing her loud maniacal laughter as she's lost in her own little world, Sousuke stands on with a concerned look on his face.

_Is Kaname suffering from mental problems? Perhaps losing her home was too traumatic for her after all. Is it possible to contract PTSD from an event such as this. What a poor girl. I must do my duty to..._

He stops his thinking for a moment and stops dead in his tracks.

_To what? Certainly it is not required of me as her bodyguard to keep her satisfied in any other way than her physical safety, yet I keep doing strange things. I neglect my own duties on a regular basis, gave up being a full time member of Mithril, and even went AWOL on the Hong Kong mission. Why is this? Even now I am unable to understand these range of more socially acceptable emotions. Perhaps I should ask Weber about it...maybe Melissa instead. _

At practically the same moment, both Kaname and Sousuke come out of their own thoughts and quickly resume their shopping.

After about 2 hours of shopping, Kaname had gathered several items that she intended to buy. She currently had in hand, (or rather Sousuke's hands) 5 different tops, 2 of them tank tops, the other three t shirts of varying design. There were also 3 different pairs of high cut shorts, 3 pairs of form fitting jeans, 2 sundresses, and a new set of pajamas. The two found themselves once again in the bathing suit section of the store. Sousuke waiting patiently in a chair, palming a knife with shifty eyes, causing all the floor saleswoman to stare on suspiciously. Kaname meanwhile in the dressing room, psyching herself up after trying on 6 different pairs of bathing suits, finally believing she found the right one, she begins to laugh maniacally once again.

"Alright Sousuke prepare to be shocked and amazed! If he doesn't like this one I'm shoving the bikini down his throat!" She says to herself in a near whisper

"Sousuke? You there?"

Sousuke, ceasing his surveillance of the area, looks up at the dressing area relieved that nothing dangerous had happened.

"Yes, Ms. Chidori, I'm here."  
"Good. Tell me what you think of this will you?"

She opens the dividing curtain and walks out in all her lithe, graceful glory. The look on Sousuke's face, was priceless. Somewhere between shock, awe, and admiration, the kind of face one has when looking at a beautiful piece of art for the first time. Awe inspiring, almost frightful in its beauty, lacking the banality of almost all other things found in this life.

This of course drove Kaname insane with excitement.

_Oh, I'm good. If it wasn't for the cold, I should just wear this all the time!_

The bikini itself covered enough so that she did not appear to promiscuous, while at the same time leaving the imagination the ability to run amok. The design was that of jungle camouflage. While no doubt no one would wear this in the middle of the jungle, it mattered little to Sousuke as he drank it all in. He also noticed she was wearing the bracelet that he had given her after one of his operations, as well as a similar matching anklet, and wore her hair back in a ponytail.

_This is good, perhaps this should be required of all female operatives. I must speak to the Captain about this. _

Despite this particularly oblivious thought, Sousuke himself was enthralled not so much by the bathing suit, but rather what it did to Kaname.

_Did she always carry herself like that? I never noticed her form **this** much. I mean I was always aware of her..._

Sousuke makes an audible gulp and blushes slightly

_athletic build. But even still...I never took in how much of a woman she is. Did I really just think that? Not good. This is not good._

"Um Sousuke?"

He quickly ceases his pondering, noticing the strange look in Kaname's eyes, a mix of happiness and perhaps anticipation.

"Ye-yes Kaname, what is it?"

"What do you mean what is it? I want to know your opinion of this swim suit. Do you like it? Does it show too much?"

She turns around and fixes the back of swim suit a little, giving Sousuke a moment to look at Kaname from a different angle. As he quickly noticed however, some of the other men in the store took that same opportunity many with their spouses or girlfriends nearby.

"Um, yes it looks good Chidori." Sousuke says in a near whisper

"What's that? I couldn't hear you Sousuke."

She of course did hear, but refused to let him off that easily.

Sousuke looking antsy, and a bit annoyed at the men's stares, opted to stand up and pushed her into the dressing room.

"H-hey Sousuke! What do you think your doing?"

"Miss Chidori, please get back inside and change back into some normal clothes. The bathing suit's...camouflage seems to be counterproductive.

Kaname, blushing, as she realized just how many men were staring at her.

"Oh, right." She smiles, gently shoving the sergeant out of the changing area.

"No peeking now, Mr. Specialist." An all knowing smile, and a wink is all she leaves the clueless operative.

The curtain closes.

Sousuke, unsure of how else to respond to the situation, proceeds to polish the knife he had been palming vigorously, sweat running down his face.

_I think I'm in trouble here._

Somewhere amongst the forest of skimpy clothing, 3 young women are diligently attempting to not be noticed by the ever watchful senses of their military crazed classmate. A gleam of light reflecting a girl in pig tails and glasses is all that is seen.

"So, what do you see Kyouko? Come on tell me tell me!"

"Mizuki, shh, we don't want to get caught do we? Can't you be more like Ren here, we are on a very sensitive op!"  
"Guys, shouldn't we leave the two of them alone, it's none of our business what they do in their free time."  
"Kyouko, do you still have that picture of Ren caressing that plushy of Senior Hayashimizu she made for herself?"  
"Uh huh."

An evil grin appears on both Kyouko's and Mizuki's faces, forcing Ren's hand.

"Aren't we supposed to be friends?"

Ren blushing furiously, and Mizuki near to bursting in laughter cease their personal battles as Kyouko smile becomes increasingly wide.

"Scooooopu."

She snaps several photos in this instance, one of Kaname in her bikini, one of the two in the changing area, one of Kaname's attempt at a alluring face, and the most prized possession of all, Sousuke gripping his knife with all the strength he can muster, his wall against the advances of the female adversary finally crashing down.

Author's notes:

A lot to report about. First, my humblest apologies for being unable to post a damn thing of late. There has been an abhorrent amount of things that have forced my hand, school work, nagging girlfriend, sickness in the family, getting sick myself , trips. For only a couple of those things im not sorry :-). Plus after committingggg myself to a um... "study session" for my eventual gundam wing/ fmp fic consisting of playing the super robot taisen games with those two in it (w mainly)

At any rate about the chapter. Hopefully I heated things up enough for some people, and I suddenly find myself with quite a bit of time for a while so I might be able to crank out a couple of chapters this weekend. So many ideas in my head from when I was unable to write, I am now ready to unleash the horde.

Next couple of chapters, I will probably introduce an oc character. I promise he won't screw up the plot too much and become the main character, but I figure he'll make a good complement to any of the fmp stories in my head. And he will probably make appearances in all of them in time. Took me a while to think of how to utilize him too.

There should be another chapter or two up by the weekend if this excess of free time continues.

Oh and can anyone guess who I stole the "scoooopu" line for Kyouko from? Might only get it if you saw the japanese version though.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I do not own Full Metal Panic!

_0700 hours, day after shopping trip_

"Ninety six."

One giant bead of sweat falls to the ground, the effort on Sousuke's face obvious, as he reaches into his reserves of energy. The Sergeant at this moment is hanging upside down from a bar he has placed in his living room area, wearing only his underwear, and a vest weighing him down by a good 40 pounds.

_Good. On the fifth and final rep for my morning workout, just a few more..._

"N-ninety-seven." He struggles to pull himself up again, his abdominal muscles killing him.

_Once I finish up I need to quickly shower...and must remember to lock the door this time._

He shudders at the idea of having Kaname walk in on him again like last time.

_I believe my chin is still sensitive from that blow from yesterday. _

He thinks back again to the circumstances leading up to the punch, including the insidious "lap pillow."A blush creeps onto his face, as he further remembers the swimsuit Kaname had picked out.

_Concentrate! I'm a professional damn it!_

"Ninety eight." This time the redness in his cheeks are not from the exertion of pulling himself up. At least not entirely.

_This is almost as bad as when I was training the Captain. _

At this point the young Sergeant falls to the ground with a large thud, having moved a little too violently after remembering that particular day. The image of the Captain writhing around on top of him, combined with Kaname's new swimsuit plastered for all intents and purposes on both of his eyeballs.

In the other room, Kaname lazily stirs, looking at the analog clock Sousuke keeps next to his bed, which she barely makes out to be 5 past 7.

_Its too early, what is with the racket?_

Meanwhile Sousuke quickly returns everything to its original position, except for a item he recently acquired. That being a heavy bag he bought for his cool down periods. This one in particular being very special. It had once belonged to the man known as Marvelous Marvin Hagler, at a fairly hefty sum (at least for people not working for Mithril) given as a gift to him from Kurtz and Melissa. After this purchase Sousuke was determined to look into this "e Bay." The Sergeant in fact enjoyed the subtleties of the sport of boxing, or rather understood at its base level. He often was forced into such fights obviously on a far less grand scale so he could win his dinner, more often than not resorting to dirty tactics against the other young men so that he could claim safety and a near full belly. After quickly wrapping up his hands with tape, he starts with a few light jabs, as he gets his feet going, beginning to create a tempo.

* * *

Kaname, after several attempts of shuffling off of Sousuke's bed, finally succeeds in standing upright, rubbing her eyes profusely in the hopes of it somehow waking her up even further. She drags her feet along to the door, to the sound of something being, basically pulverized.

Confused, and yet not too surprised, she opens the door and rubs her eyes again.

_What is that crazy fool doing now, at this ungodly hour?_

She opens her eyes blearily to (for her) an interesting sight.

The heavy bag is swinging violently as the young Sergeant maneuvers around the bag, placing his shots carefully, first a flicking jab, followed by a right cross, that slams into the side of the bag, sending it in the opposite direction, which causes Sousuke to react quickly as he shifts his weight, ending up almost instantaneously on the other side, as he hits the bag again, with a series of punches alternating between left and right handed hooks to the body. He sends the bag flying yet again with a flurry of jabs and a final decisive uppercut thrown from a very low position, that slams mightily into the bag, causing it to lift higher off the ground than anticipated.

And yet in spite of this show of force, what amazed the young high school girl was the look on Sousuke's face.

Something she had not yet seen before, a strange smile. This alone was something she never got a chance to see, but the smile itself gave off something painful. Not only that but his eyes were what freaked her out most of all. The cold calculating look in his eyes she only saw when he fought, like during the escape from the impromptu lab at the Khanka Autonomous Region, as well as the fight at her school against A21.

It chilled her right down to the bone.

So much so that she did not notice that Sousuke had already stopped and was looking at her intently, the normal bemused and thoughtful look in his eye.

"Did you sleep well?"

"Um yeah, your bed is surprisingly comfy, probably because you almost never sleep in it." She laughs nervously, still shaken.

"Is there something the matter Kaname?"

No malice in his voice, no strange look in his eye this time, only the usual concerned tone he almost exclusively reserved for her.

"Not really."

Twiddling her thumbs for a second, she quickly decides to change the subject.

"So, um I didn't know you box. Part of your training regiment?"

Sousuke looks at the heavy bag for a moment before deciding to drag it back into the closet he had relegated it to for when it wasn't in use.

"Sort of. Since your staying here, rather than doing my morning run to cool down I figured it would be safer to work with the bag."

"Oh. I see. But your pretty good then considering you haven't really trained in it. I've seen some of the matches down at Korakuen Hall and you seem to fight just like them."

Sousuke, having finished putting the heavy bag away sits down and begins to remove his weighted vest, first by removing the weights inside.

"I'm surprised then. My experience in the sport has only been the street type."

"What do you mean?"

"After the Helmajistani War, I ended up in Cambodia, after getting separated from Kalinin. When I got to one of the outlying villages, I was offered a chance to fight other small children my age for what food and shelter I could, the only condition being that I won."

Kaname, not expecting this sits down, and stares at the bottle of Jameson Irish Whiskey Mao had left behind not sure what to do but listen.

"I of course, having no other options, accepted. Most of the fights were fairly easy, the children already too far gone to be of any use.

What looks like a morose smile creeps back onto Sousuke's face as he begins to take off the vest, which has Chidori blushing, yet too entrapped in Sousuke's story to mention anything of it.

"About a month later, I met a boy, who grew up in similar conditions. I never bothered to ask for his name. We became good friends, sharing food on days where the lack of it nearly killed us."

Hopeful that this story has a somewhat happy ending Kaname brightens up a bit.

"He was the first person my own age I believe I ever killed."

A long, creeping silence filled the room.

"One day we were forced to fight, and it was plain as day there was no way out. We both knew we couldn't hold back if we wanted to survive. So when I finally got past his guard, I let loose with all I could muster. All it took was one right hook to the temple."

Sousuke repeats the motion with his hand.

"He was dead a week later from the trauma."

This time the only thing to be heard after were Kaname's sobs, her head in her hands as Sousuke finishes unraveling the tape he had over his hands. The hands stained with blood, perhaps a image that fit Sousuke all too well in Kaname's mind at the moment.

"Are you scared?"

"Yes."

"Perhaps that is for the best."

He takes a towel and begins to wipe his hands clean as he moves over to the bathroom.

As the lock clicks, Kaname ceases her sniffling, unsure of quite how to react to the information she received.

_I suppose I've always known he's had to kill people in the past, before we met, even when he left me alone to go on those missions. He's had to kill a few times in front of me before even. And half the time I'm pretty sure they deserved it. But still...this is too much. All those times he fought around me, did he just make sure to avoid excessive bloodshed for my sake?_

She gets up and grabs the bandages Sousuke had discarded as she makes her way over to the trash can to toss them out. The blood still fresh and wet, Kaname shudders at the feel of it.

_Just how much do I know about him? I mean really? I don't know anything about his time growing up, how he feels after those awful missions...that one time he came back after we got back from the beach...yeah that's where I recognized that look in his eye from._

_Am I scared of Sousuke now?_

She finally musters up the courage to toss the bloody bandages away, and proceeds to wash off the excess blood from her hands in the sink. The cold water showers over her hands, the blood trickling down off her hand quickly.

_I'm just not sure._

_

* * *

_

As Sousuke exits the bathroom, Kaname quickly enters, not able to look Sousuke directly in the eye as the bathroom door shuts behind him.

Not knowing what else to do, Sousuke moves over to the table containing all his radio equipment while simultaneously putting on his school jacket. He puts the headset to his ear and begins transmission.

"This is Urzu 7 reporting in. Please connect me to Lt. Commander Kalinin"

"Heya Sousuke old buddy!"

A quick pause punctuated by the sound of a loud thud.

"Er I mean this is Urzu 6 receiving transmission. Any new information?"

"No nothing to report at this time, although while you are on the line I need to discuss something with you about the term of "bumping uglies."

"Uh...maybe another time Sousuke, you know how bitchy Mao is before her morning..."

Another loud thud, followed by the rattling of the headset switching to someone else.

" Ignoring that moron, how are things with Angel? You two making good sleeping buddies?"

_It appears the Sergeant Major is not above this type of harassment as well. _

" Due to the adequate amount of room in the apartment as well as the superb insulation and heating, there is no need to share body warmth."

"Ugh, just how little do you understand of humor Sousuke?"

"I am unsure of what you mean."

"Forget it. I'm too tired to deal with your stupidity as well. Well I suppose carelessness is the more apt term. I already have to deal with this horny German. Is there anything significant worth reporting?"

"No, I suppose not."

"Good."

A very brief rattle before Mao is back on the line again.

"Almost forgot, Tessa has been asking about you again. You better watch out Sergeant Studley."

"Wait! I need to speak to-"

The line cuts off here.

"Sergeant Studley?" A confused look in his eyes followed by a mass of blinking is all he can do in response to that comment.

"Is this some military jargon I have yet to hear about?" This thought not being high on his list of priorities, gets pushed to the side for now as he prepares his tools for the day and eats some leftover jerkey for sustenance.

"I guess I'll just speak to the Lt. Commander later then."

As he chews on the hunk of dried meat, he begins to pour over the events leading up to this moment the past few days. The panic Sousuke felt when he thought that Kaname's apartment was being rigged with explosives, the wave of pain and exhaustion that had him collapsing to the ground, the strange emotions he had begun to discover at the shopping district, and, most vividly, the pain of seeing Kaname's tear stricken face.

_Perhaps I should not have told her the truth. It should be clear that a civilian like Kaname is unable to handle such things. Despite her resourcefulness she is still ultimately a young woman, almost completely untainted by war._

"I can see why Kaname would hate me."

Sousuke still lost in thought, gets up and prepares his bag for school. Hidden amongst the pages of his Japanese History book are several compartments where he has placed sets of throwing knives, finding them to be a very inconspicuous items to hide inside the book. He also places a glock, a larger combat knife, several flash grenades, and his trusty Steyr S.P.P.

Perhaps since it comes with the military background, he is somehow able to fit all of these things neatly into his bag along with all his school books. As he gets ready to close the bag up, Kaname walks out of the bathroom, dressed for school.

The two exchange looks, both unsure as to what to do for a while. Kaname decides to break the silence.

"You don't enjoy killing right Sousuke?"

Sousuke looks away to put on his watch.

"Affirmative."

"You didn't want to kill the boy right?"

"That is correct."

Kaname notices there is none of the usual crisp military tone in his responses this time, they are instead spoken out softly. Part of her even thinking she hears pain in his voice.

Kaname stands there for a moment with her head bowed. Sousuke turns to her ready for a tirade.

She surprises Sousuke by wrapping her arms around him, bringing one hand up to gently stroke the back of his tousled hair.

"Then I suppose it's not a problem then. Right Sergeant Sagara?" She looks up into his eyes and gives him a warm smile.

"I suppose it isn't, Miss Chidori."

"You know, we are pretty close now, so just stick with Kaname, ok?

"Roger. I will cease calling you Chidori then."

She laughs a little at this, realizing how close in proximity they have been to each other the past minute or so, and begins to back away as a result.

"Typical Sousuke. I suppose that's a good sign then. Well come on then, let's get going, we don't want to dawdle too long."

"Affirmative."

The two walk through the door together as if nothing had happened.

* * *

_0830 Jindai High School_

As Sousuke and Kaname reach the entrance to the school, two voices are heard yelling loudly, near the top of their lungs.

"KAAA-NAAAA-MEEEE"

"SAGARA!"

The two calling out are in Kaname's case, none other than her photo centricccc friend Kyouko, and much to Sousuke's displeasure, Issei Tsubaki comes barreling down on the forlorn Sergeant ready and raring for another fight, going so far as to put on his goofy glasses.

"THIS ENDS TODAY SAGARA! YOUR GOING DOWN!"

Sousuke sighs, preparing for another pointless drawn out battle.

"Ms..."

Kaname, glares at Sousuke and he, surprisingly, gets the message.

"Er Kaname, I'm afraid I am going to be a tad bit late to class again, do not wait up for me."

"Yeah I figured. Have fun you two."

Sousuke merely nods his head in response as he pulls out a set of throwing knives and runs off into the distance to avoid heavily populated areas of the school.

"Geez when will those two quit acting like a couple of little brats toward each other?"

Kaname begins her trek into the main building with Kyouko in tow.

"Kaname, I'm proud of you, you didn't yell at them or anything this time."

"Hm, maybe I'm finally getting used to their crazy antics?"

"I imagine you have no problem with that Kaname." Kyouko whispers into Kaname's ear.

Kaname begins to blush profusely.

"Wh-what's that supposed to mean Kyouko?"

"Nothing, nothing at all. I'm just thinking that you'll have **plenty** of time to get used to all of Sousuke's...quirks. I mean after all, you two are so very very **close.**" She giggles as she runs off to the restroom.

"KYOUKO! WHAT THE HECK DO YOU MEAN BY THAT!"

Kaname, blushing furiously and desperate to know what's on her surprisingly devious friend's mind, she runs down the corridors in chase at a near full sprint, Rounding one corner, she literally slams into someone.

There is only one thought that crosses her mind as she falls flat on her butt.

_This person's built like a brick-house!_

She slides back a few inches, her butt sore from the less than graceful landing she looks up at the proverbial wall she had hit.

The "wall" in question hadn't looked like he had shaved recently, his hair a thick black mass, and striking features, a sharp nose, and cold looking eyes, a bluish white hue of ice, befitting a man of the tundra. The muscles this man packed far different from Sousuke's in terms of mass. He looked like the type who trained far beyond any limits of sanity. He was even smoking a cigarette, a Sobranie. Perhaps the most striking and noticeable thing about him being a scar running from somewhere near the top of his left eyebrow down past his cheek stopping near his chiseled jaw.

"You should watch where you are going missie, or else you'll make an ass of yourself. Like you did just now." He says all this with a thick, Russian accent, while holding out a hand for Kaname to grab on to, with a snide smile on his visage.

Kaname, incensed by this inflammatory remark, huffs and picks herself up, pushing back the strange Russian's hand.

"I was going to apologize for bumping in to you, but now I think I'll just be on my way. If you have the time to be rude for the sake of it, why don't you just go running back to the Kremlin?"

Another huff, and she begins to walk away.

The strange Russian, shrugging, takes a long drag from the Sobranie, letting out a large amount of smoke as a result.

Kaname quickly comes back around and gets in the Russian's face.

"AND! THERE IS **NO** SMOKING ON SCHOOL GROUNDS MISTER!"

She grabs the half finished cigarette from the Russian's mouth and stomps it onto the ground. Kaname takes the time to run after Kyouko again.

Once she is out of hearing distance, the man pulls out another Sobranie, and lights up.

"So, that is the person of interest huh? Just what in Mother Russia's name have I got myself in to?"

* * *

Meanwhile, at the top of the school roof, Issei Tsubaki has (once again) cornered Sousuke and requested to fight (once again) in order to win the heart of Kaname, and to determine just who is the strongest.

Sousuke, being in no mood for this fight, sighs heavily.

"Would it be possible to end this fight now? After all peaceful solutions-"

"JUST SHUT UP! NO WAY IN HELL IS THIS FIGHT STOPPING JUST BECAUASE YOUR WIMPING OUT!"

Shrugging Sousuke drops down into a classic type of fighting stance with one caveat: that being (to Issei's trained eye) that much of Sousuke's weight is being emphasized on his lead foot.

_Hmph. Only an amateur would do something like that. _

"I'm real disappointed Sagara, looks like today's match might be over real quick."

"If that's what you wish to believe, then feel free."

Sousuke brings his left hand forward, and beckons Issei to attack.

Issei, insulted by his almost boastful display of confidence, yells loudly, as if to let out what he believes to be a battle cry, and charges forward, palm forward, with his fingers curled in front of him, and thumb to the side, he aims for the center of Sousuke's chest!

"DAINOMIYAKU SECRET TECHNIQUE! THROMBOTIC FIST!"

Just before the palm strike connects, Sousuke sidesteps the strike and lets the palm whiz right by.

_SHIT! The horrible fighting stance was just a ploy?_

Sousuke, catches Issei's with both hands, then brings his left arm around to grab him from around the neck, and tosses him bodily backwards onto the ground, his other hand still holding tightly onto Issei's wrist.

Issei, shocked by this display of technique, is at a loss for words as he turns and holds a knife to Issei's throat.

"Was that Judo? That was some pretty surprising technique considering your such a weapons freak, Sagara."

Sousuke shakes his head at this statement.

"You are close to the mark Tsubaki. That was a move I learned from my commanding... I mean my foster father, he is a master of Combat Sambo."

"That the one they teach to the Spetsnaz, the Russian Special Forces?"

"That is correct, your knowledge of the other martial arts is commendable. However, this knowledge will not help you against such techniques. The techniques I learned were for the sole purpose of killing."

Sousuke looks deeply into Tsubaki's eyes, to the point of making his blood run cold.

Sousuke puts away the knife and walks to the door leading back into the main building.

"To assume otherwise and to fight without the conviction of possibly killing your opponent, is truly a self defeating style. It **will** get you killed. You do well to remember that. I only hope this defeat will make you realize the foolishness of fighting me."

Sousuke closes the door behind him with a large bang, that reverberates in Issei's ears.

Issei begins to shiver a little as he regains his senses.

_Was that the **real **Sagara just now? I didn't just see murder in his eyes, I saw the eyes of a seasoned killer today. _

_Just what the hell have I got myself into?_

_

* * *

_

_5 minutes later, 1 minute before the start of class_

Meanwhile, inside Kagurazaki's class, the usual chaos before class is in full swing, with the students talking amongst themselves.

Shinji is sitting with Ono D and Sousuke, with Shinji rattling off the latest specs of some new model RK-92s and the "rumors" of a new AS to be deployed by several of the big nations such as the Americans and the Soviets, codenamed the "M9" which naturally makes Shinji giddy with excitement.

Sousuke, already fully aware of the existence of the machines, nods absentmindedly as he looks around the room for anything strange. Ono D is perfectly content to look and not touch Sousuke's military equipment (as he learned from effectively starting the Full Monty Virus scare.)

For the girls on the other hand, the air was far more tense.

For one thing, rumors were going around that a new student entering the class today was in fact a boy, a foreigner, the first real foreigner (as Sousuke is surprisingly to some of Japanese origin) in the class since Tessa's brief stay. The girls also have it in their heads that the man is supposed to be very attractive. Many of the girls as a result are in a tizzy, all except for 4 women. There is Ren, who was recently transferred to the class for some unknown reason, sitting next to Kaname, blushing, and feeling for the most part very guilty.

There is Kyouko and Mizuki, sitting on the other side of and in the corner of respectively to Kaname.

The girls are looking at each other, writing "discreet" messages and giggling a little, with the full purpose of getting Kaname riled up.

On that note, that is exactly the best way to describe the mood of Kaname Chidori. She is seething. Angry. Bat shit crazy. Amongst other things, as she is doing her best to obtain the information that has the two giggling like...well the schoolgirls they are.

_OOOOOOOH THIS IS SO DAMN FRUSTRATING! I CAN'T TAKE IT!_

Kaname is ruffling her hair with her hands excessively as she is saying this,causing Kyouko and Mizuki to laugh uncontrollably, and even causing a silent laugh from Ren.

Kaname tries her best to compose herself.

_What information could she possibly have?_

_An embarrassing baby photo? No Kyouko has already seen those, I doubt its those._

_Then what?_

_Let's see, she called yesterday to go shopping, she didn't seem to be scheming anything then._

_Between then and now what's happened?_

The sound of Kaname's head hitting the desk is all that's heard in the classroom

_Fuck._

"Kaname!"

Sousuke gets up from the seat behind Kaname and turns her around in her chair to get a look at her face.

"No bullet wound, it's not a sniper then. Could it be a slow acting poison? Shit!"

Kaname, is of course still pretty conscious, although her head is a little rattled from her self inflicted head bump.

_There is no way in hell explaining this away is going to be easy. _

"KANAME!"

Thwack. Thwack. Thwack.

The sounds made as Kaname strikes Sousuke with her halisen. Not once, not twice, but three times.

The smacks result in Sousuke landing in the back of the room, Kaname fuming, not so much as Sousuke's embarrassing (for her) overreaction, but at the realization that there is probably photographic evidence of her and Sousuke out together. Shopping.

_DAMN THAT KYOUKO AND HER CAMERA! I WILL DESTROY IF ITS THE LAST THING ILL EVER DO!_

She looks over at her best friend, a demonic smile on her face.

Kyouko, giving her own creepy smile puts the camera away.

_I'm sorry for being so cruel Kana-chan, but if I don't do things like this, you'll never move forward yourself, even if Sousuke makes a move._

The smile widens a bit.

_Besides I just love your reactions too much._

She pulls the camera out real quick and snaps a shot of Kaname's crazed smiling face, then quickly hides it away again.

"CLASS THAT IS ENOUGH!"

Ms. Kagurazaki finally takes this time to take charge of the class. Most of the class is back in their seats, except for Kaname, who is still fuming a little, and Sousuke, still a twitching, bleeding mass in the back of the room.

"Now then, I have a new student to introduce to the class. God help him. Please enter."

The sliding door opens, and in enters a large man. Kaname, finally calming down, recognizes him right away as the same man that she had bumped into less than a half hour ago.

She had noticed before that he was in fact wearing the school uniform, along with a necklace that had the hammer and sickle embossed on it. He also had the same snide smile on his face his eyes glued on Kaname.

"Ah, the rude girl."

Kaname decides to redirect her fuming rage at the man.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY? IM RUDE! YOU WERE A TOTAL JERK TO ME BEFORE I EVEN HAD A CHANCE TO APOLOGIZE!"

"Kaname! Please sit down." Ms. Kagurazaki scolds.

Kaname begrudgingly sits down.

"Now then, please introduce yourself Mr...uh..."

"It is alright, it is better perhaps that I introduce myself."

He steps forward and puts his feet together in a very crisp military way much like Sousuke, his hands behind his back.

"I am Asimov Vorg Zolnerowich. The name Zolnerowich means son of the soldier for those who are curious to know. I come from the Siberian Wastes, at the foot of the Ural mountains, so I am how you say unused to the big cities, except for the occasional visit to St. Petersburg. So big cities customs such as Tokyo's is something I'm not used to. I hope you all treat me well. I am in your care.

He bows his head in a polite matter.

"Questions for mister...uh...?"

"Ms. Kagurazaki, if it is easy for you, use my middle name when addressing me, so Mr. Vorg is fine."

"Thank you Mr. Vorg. Well then, any questions for our new Russian friend?"

No hands were forthcoming, as most of the student body is daunted by his size and demeanor.

A common whisper heard in these few moments being

"He's scarier than Sagara!"

"That foreigner could kill us all!"

The list goes on.

"Class! How rude! You shouldn't..."

Asimov raises his hand to stop the teacher.

"It is not a problem, you get used to it. I expect no less."

He walks to the seat in front of Ren, that is to say, diagonally to Kaname. As he prepares to take his seat.

"Your name is Kaname Chidori yes?"

Kaname, a little freaked out, gulps audibly.

"Y-yes that's me."

"Wonderful. I am glad I was able to remember the name."

The man known as Asimov bows his head slightly and holds out his hand to Kaname.

"Voshtok rov karve, Gospoja прошептал ."

"I'm sorry?"

"Ah, my apologies."

A very strange smile crosses his face. He pulls out a Sobranie, and lights it, as he gets closer and whispers to Kaname

"It means, nice to meet you, Miss Whispered."

* * *

Author notes:

I apologize for slightly extending the promise of a new chapter for the weekend, however im already half way done with the next chapter so not all bad. I was hoping to do a double release.

Anyways, a lot has happened this chapter so I will explain a couple of things.

Yea this one has a bit more drama in it than the previous ones.

I dont mind that as this is also a drama, or at least thats the plan. It was talked about in the series and later on in the manga and novels that Sousuke is more than just a soldier, he is a trained killer, a man who can in many ways be a man just like Gauron. I feel like it is a point that should be emphasized properly in this story, even though it is supposedly resolved in the Hong Kong incident, I never really bought it and as such feel it should be addressed further in this story.

The move Tsubaki uses is the move he uses on Sousuke in their first fight. At least I think that's a decent way to spell it out anyways.

As for my OC character...he will be staying. No if and or but about it.

Do not fret though, as I have NO plans for him to move in on Kaname or anything retarded like that.

This is a KxS story primarily, and should really focus more on their development and final realization, rather than have a pointless love triangle introduced (considering the already obligatory tessa kaname sousuke one.) He is mainly here to further the story as an extension of myself, and he is in now way the main character of this story.

As badass as I think he is.

Will he fall in love?

Havent a clue.

I'll resolve that by the midway point of the story.

(which is a long way off.)

Anyways I believe that is all, I am tired, and hope you all liked this new chapter.

If you did not, I apologize, I assure you their will not be much more drama if at all in the first part of the very long story I have in mind.

P.S. The funny looking word used in the Russian phrase at the end is the word for Whispered in Russian, using the Russian alphabet. I couldnt find a phonetic spelling of the word using the English alphabet so I just copy and pasted the word.

P.P.S. Since someone asked me, the places and things I mention usually are real things.

The breakfast joint mentioned previous chapter is a real place.

Korakuen Hall is real. So hooray for me and for many Hajime No Ippo fans.

For most of the things, if you feel its too bothersome to ask me, just google or wiki trust me you'll find it very easily.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

I do not own Full Metal Panic.

* * *

Fear.

It is a emotion that all people struggle with. An intrinsic part of the human condition that in most cases keeps one from doing something foolish, and away from the dangerous.

For Kaname, her fight or flight instinct was going off like crazy as this strange foreigner smiled his strange smile in front of her, after his rather shocking introduction.

Run.

Hit.

Cry.

Beg.

All ideas that crossed Kaname's mind in the course of a second.

And yet, all she could do as she sat there was shake uncontrollably, unable to move her legs, her tongue feeling like it had swollen and her heart going faster than a bullet exiting a chamber.

_Why can't I move? It's...it's just like before...with Tessa's brother...and **that** man...oh god... Sousuke..._

"BACK AWAY FROM MS. CHIDORI!"

Kaname, after hearing these words, finds the ability to move, and cranes her neck to the back of the room, much like the rest of her classmates, to stare at Sousuke, Glock in hand, and a fire burning in his eyes none of the students had never seen before.

Kaname however, had seen it before.

In the moments before he killed men, such as the traitors on the Tuatha de Danaan.

"M...MR. SAGARA! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING!" Ms. Kagurazaki yelled.

"Da, Sagara, what is it you are doing exactly?"

Sousuke noticed quickly that a gun was peeking out of Asimov's pocket, a Gsh-18 by the look of it.

"SO EVEN IN DEATH I CAN'T ESCAPE YOU? IS THAT HOW IT IS GAURON!"

The class stares on, confused.

All except for two people, Kaname, and Ms. Kagurazaki.

Ms. Kagurazaki while not recognizing the name, recognizes the face all too well now...

"_He looks just like the man from the hijacking! OH GOD!"_

She proceeds to fall back into her chair.

For Kaname, it all begins to make sense as she looks at the Russian again.

In many ways the man did in fact look like Gauron, down to the same scar. The only differences being the color of his eyes, the hue of his skin far lighter than the terrorist Gauron, and an absence of a cross shaped scar on his forehead.

Silence permeates the room for a good five seconds.

Followed by laughter, a deep, rolling laugh, that further rouses Sousuke's ire, as it too reminds him of the condescending chuckle of the man he despises most in this world.

"I forget the history you have with the man Sagara, do not fret, he and I have...very little to do with one another." A look of disgust passes over his visage briefly.

"I suggest you put the weapon away, you forget yourself...what was that name again...ah right, I remember."

He pauses for a moment.

"Kashim."

"I should kill you for that, Asmiov."

"You can certainly go ahead and try, you dirty little street rat."

"Um, what is going on?" Ren says in a meek tone.

Sousuke and Vorg look around the room, realizing the attention they are drawing.

Shrugging, Asimov reaches into his pocket and very quickly removes the clip from his gun, and slides it over to Sousuke.

"I think this will do for now. Wouldn't you agree, Kashim?"

Sousuke stares down the man known as Asimov.

"Don't call me that again, or I swear I'll put this entire clip through your skull."

"Is that so? I can't wait to see you try."

Another chuckle and Asimov turns around and sits in his seat, very proper, back perfectly straight, very much like a statue in repose. All except for the cigarette in his mouth.

The whole class, still rather frightened by the affair, decide to all look in any direction but in the direction of the new student and Sousuke.

It takes Sousuke several minutes before he is able to calm himself down enough to sit down in his chair.

The class at this point devolves into a whole lot of gossiping as Ms. Kagurazaki is still out cold in her chair.

The girls and boys outside of Kaname's little group are talking incessantly about the very strange Russian man.

"He is wayy too tall to be a high school student."

"Right? And that scruff, he could be in his late 20s at least."

"Maybe this school has a thing about accepting strange foreign exchange students."

"Yea, it's like this guy is Sagara 2.0., At least Sousuke doesn't try to scare the hell out of us...I think."

"But what the hell was that about some dead guy? I'm pretty sure Sousuke hasn't actually killed a damn thing..."

More gossip.

As for the part of the room with Kaname's group, things are much different. Kyouko, Ren, and Mizuki are all rather silent, they sit together trying to avoid the foreigner.

Ono D and Shinji are quietly reading AS Fan and snacking.

Kaname, for all intents and purposes scared out of her mind, decides to do something very uncharacteristic of her.

She gets up, and sits down next to Sousuke, and pulls her chair in next to him.

Under normal circumstances, this would have warranted a bout of blushing and bluffing by Kaname, and misguided action by Sousuke.

However, due to the presence of Asimov, all such embarrassment flows out the window. She grabs onto his arm gently, obviously feeling frightened. Sousuke, all too aware of the situation, sits in abject silence, his gun still pointed straight at Asimov, while he continues to smoke.

Several minutes pass, before the strange Russian walks over to Ono D and Shinji, which causes Sousuke to gulp audibly, more than ready to fire his gun at the man that carries the image of the man he hates most in this world.

Ono D, pretending to be asleep is safe from the stare of the foreigner, Shinji however, is not so lucky. Looking over his copy of AS fan, he stares into the eyes of Asimov for a good minute.

Silence... Then...

"Do you have paper I could use? I have no ashtray and need to improvise."

Shinji, scared out of his wits, rips out a page from his AS Fan and hands it to the wild looking man.

"Yzumitelno! that saves me a lot of trouble. Thank you, uh..." He stops bemused for a moment, then puts his face close to the poor lad's own. "What is your name?"

"I-i-its Shinji sir!" He replies loudly.

"Very good, nice to meet you Mr. Shinji. And please, call me Vorg, or Asmiov, whichever you prefer."

He flashes him a smile, that if not for the manic look in his eye, would almost seem genuine. He then moves his hand towards Shinji, causing the young man to flinch, not realizing that the man was merely attempting to shake his hand.

"Now now, no need to be so concerned, I only wish to extend a proper greeting, but perhaps another time when you are less...skittish. Dasvidania."

The room lets out an audible sigh as the man walks right past his seat and heads for the door.

"Seeing as the teacher is indisposed for the moment, I'll be leaving for the day. I'll be seeing you very soon Kashim." He walks out of the room, and Kaname is about to gasp for air when he pops his head back in to say

"And you too, Angel" his head disappears and once again a deep silence penetrates the room. This time no gossip is spread, no words spoken.

Silence, and the smell of smoke, wafting through the room.

* * *

_Several hours later, lunch_

In spite of the terrible state of the homeroom teacher, now resting in the nurse's office, most of the students decided to stay behind, and self studied, since many did not feel like speaking out loud too much after the events of the early morning. At lunch time, Kaname finally moved from her seat next to Sousuke to get lunch. Sousuke, naturally worried for her, goes along with her. No words are spoken as they pass through the halls, and no quips from Kaname's friends either.

After buying lunch from the food vendors, (who surprisingly enough have no trouble selling to Sagara despite their past... "altercations,") they all end up at the school roof, no doubt wishing to prevent entering the classroom until there was no other choice left.

The foreboding silence continues to hang like a fog over the group for a few minutes, until, unsurprisingly, Ono D opens his mouth.

" So, Sagara, just what in the hell happened in there?"

"It was a mistake on my part, please disregard..."

"A mistake? To be honest I think it was a mistake for not shooting that guy square in the eyes with that...I'm hoping its an air soft gun or something." Ono D punctuates this by ripping open his next packet of bread rather forcefully.

The girls, a little turned off by Ono D's lack of decorum, turn towards Sagara, who have had their curiosities over the situation piqued as well.

"I hate to say it Sousuke, but I don't think your exactly telling us the truth about that guy, or why you got so angry." Kyouko states in a genuinely concerned tone.

"Well sure, since when has this guy ever been good at lying anyways?" Mizuki states rather bluntly

"Your just saying that because you ended up getting caught by your friends after the horrible fake date." Shinji says over a mouthful of yakisoba.

As Mizuki proceeds to pummel Shinji a few times in the gut, Kyouko and Ren turn their attentions toward Kaname

"That goes for you too Kaname, you've been awfully quiet since he showed up today, he said something weird to you I know, what was it..." Kyouko ponders over it for a minute.

"I think he said something like nice to meet you, Miss Whispered..., whatever that means." Ren says matter of factly, and proceeds to pat Kaname on the head, who has still throughout the conversation failed to utter a word.

"I am sure that is just your imagination, Miss Mikihara, and not a matter worth discussing at the present time." Sousuke proceeds to bite into his plain roll after stating this.

Ono D stands up after hearing this, and gets in Sagara's face. "Not worth discussing? I think it's damn well worth the trouble, given the scare you guys gave the whole class! That and I don't think any of us have ever seen you go into a rage like that before. I seriously thought you were going to kill that guy, no joke."

The rest of the group nods their heads, except for Kaname and Sousuke obviously. They knowing the obvious answer to that problem.

Kyouko moves back over to Sousuke and pushes Ono D out of the way.

"Look Sousuke, I know you don't like talking a lot about your private matters, and this definitely seemed like one, but today you scared all of us, and we are your friends. We just want to understand what's going on, I think we deserve to be kept in the loop.

Once again, the group nods their heads in agreement simultaneously.

Sousuke crosses his arms defensively, and closes his eyes for a minute, pondering the pros and cons of telling them.

_It is true that the situation I have put the class in due to my indiscretion in openly confronting Asimov will possibly put them in added danger, however, there is no way I can tell them everything, without putting them all in far greater jeopardy. Is there a way to reconcile these two dilemmas?_

He stays like that for a good few minutes, with the rest of the group waiting for him to respond.

Finally, he opens his eyes and sighs heavily, very uncharacteristically for the Mithril operative.

"By no means do I wish to pull the wool over your eyes, however the fact of the matter is I cannot tell you everything."

Ono D grabs Sousuke by the scruff of the neck at this

" What's that, you think we can't handle it or some shit like that? Don't take us lightly or else I'm gonna sock you, forget the fact that I'm sure you could kick my ass."

"You didn't let me finish, I was going to say I'll tell you what I can, and that's all. I hope you will all be satisfied with that."

Ono D, feeling a bit foolish backs away from the arm slave pilot, and bows his head apologetically. The rest laugh at his brashness and nod in acknowledgment at Sousuke's statement.

Kaname takes this moment to chime in "Are you sure, Sousuke?"

Sousuke nods his head "I won't be able to tell them the important parts, but enough to ensure that they are armed with basic knowledge of the situation. No more, no less."

Sousuke turns to the group and clears his throat.

" I was not lying when I said I mistook our new classmate, Asimov, for a face from my past. However, despite my regret over exacerbating the situation, I will say that the man should be considered dangerous. I suggest you all be wary around him, but please do your best to not make said wariness obvious."

"Should I assume you can't tell us why you think he's dangerous?" says Ono D.

" Unfortunately that is correct, at present, I cannot disclose my reasoning of the situation, only that you should trust my word on this, and stay clear of him."

"Fair enough, Mr. Sagara, but just who is it you mistook the man for? It seemed to rattle Kaname as well when you mentioned that name earlier...Gauron I think." says Ren

Kaname flinches at this, and Sousuke puts his hand on her shoulder to steady her a little.

" I feel I can also only give cursory information on this as well. Let me ask this first though, Kyouko, does Asimov remind you of anyone in particular? Or you Shinji? I know you two saw him before."

Shinji and Kyouko look at each other for a second, a little perplexed, before a light finally comes on in Shinji's head.

"Hey yeah, I remember now! He looks like the guy that hijacked the plane on our school trip!"

Kyouko pops her head up as well at this.

"Oh gosh, your right. But what does that have to do with..." She trails off for a second lost in thought then looks Sousuke straight in the eye.

"Is he the man you knew from before? Gauron?"

"In a word, yes."

"But we all met him that day, how could you have grown to have such a grudge like that? I mean we all were scared out our wits and hated the whole situation but..." Shinji looks on confused.

Sousuke shakes his head.

"You misunderstood, that man and I, had met before."

"What do you mean met before?" Ren asks with concern in her voice, still unsure as to what exactly is going on.

"I can only say that the man, Gauron, hurt many people I knew, and I happened to not be one of the people hurt. That man for lack of a better word, turned my existence upside down."

Kaname too looks on at the Sergeant now, curious, as she only barely understood the hatred she felt for the man known as Gauron. She knew enough that he was involved in operations in Helmajistan back when Sousuke was there, but that was all Sousuke had ever told his charge, most likely in an effort to block it out.

Already knowing the answer, Kyouko pipes up again. "When you say he hurt people you knew you mean...?"

"Yes. He murdered them. Viciously, and with as much precision as could be possible." His stone cold proclamation floored the group, sans Kaname.

"_Well that explains the crazy weaponry." thinks Ono D_

"That's all I can say. I'm sorry I can't disclose any more information at this time. To be honest, I hope I never have to."

"Why?" Asks Mizuki.

"Because that means the situation has become dire, and you are already in a state of danger."

Nothing more is said the rest of the lunch period by the group of friends. Kaname, however, sensing the emotional turmoil beginning to brew in her bodyguard, grabs a hold of his hand. No objections from the sergeant as he holds her hand back.

"I'm right here Sousuke." she whispers into his ear.

Sousuke nods at this.

_I think our roles have reversed, I am now being protected by her._

He sighs again and takes another bite of his roll.

_I never realized I'd ever be ok with that. I must be getting soft._

_

* * *

_

_After school_

The tension in the classroom had let up after lunch, seeing as the exchange student had not been back all day. And for the most part, the last periods of the day went by in a flash. After class let out, Kyouko decided to walk part of the way with Kaname and Sousuke toward their apartments.

"Kaname, do you want company tonight at your place? I can stay for a while." Kyouko asks her friend.

Kaname smiles at this and shakes her head

"Thanks Kyouko, but I think I'll be ok now. Besides, Sergeant Serious over here is probably going to insist on taking me back to my place anyways." She points over at Sousuke, who, despite their closeness earlier today, is back at a respectable distance, keeping watch diligently.

Kyouko pouts a little at this. "Ok, but please call me if you change your mind I'll run right over!" She clasps her hands with Kaname, and looks to be at the verge of tears.

Kaname begins to laugh, and pats her best friend on the head

"Will do, Kyouko, but please stop with the waterworks."

Kyouko nods her head and stifles her sniffles. She turns around and walks away. She then decides to do something rather surprising for Sousuke and Kaname.

She hugs Sousuke real tight. To the point where Sousuke began to wonder as to his own lung capacity.

Kaname, despite the sobering nature of the day, somehow finds the little hamster in her head turning, specifically towards jealousy, and hitting Sousuke portions of her brain activity.

"I'm sorry about today Sousuke, thanks for sharing with us." Kyouko says, sniffling a bit.

"It's not a problem Miss Tokiwa." Sousuke says with as much kindness as he could muster. Not knowing what else to do in the situation, he pats her on the head.

Little did the Sergeant know that that only riled up Kaname more.

Kyouko breaks away from the hug, a bit of redness to her cheeks. She bows her head then runs off in the direction of the train station.

Sousuke waits for Kyouko to disappear from sight before turning around to resume the trek to his apartment.

"Alright then Kaname shall we get …..?" Sousuke stops abruptly after seeing the look on Kaname's face.

"So, you seemed to be enjoying yourself over there Sousuke huh?" Kaname says sardonically, as she begins to tap the ground in her typical fashion with her feet, her hand keeping tempo on her elbow.

"Um, Kaname?" Sousuke asks, genuinely bewildered. "Enjoying what?"

Kaname turns around in a huff and begins walking to the apartment.

"Oh nothing, I suppose it isn't even worth mentioning right now!"

"Wait, Kaname!" Sousuke tries to keep pace with her, but she only increases her speed every time he gets next to her.

Sousuke, not knowing what else to do continues to follow behind her.

"At least you seem back to normal."

"Is that supposed to mean something?"

" Merely that you seem to be talkative again, which proves to me your in a better mood."

"Oh is that so, you think you have me figured out pretty well don't you?"

"Not entirely, but enough to know when your sad or happy for the most part!"

Kaname turns around at this, her face red and eyes a little puffy.

"If only the same could be said about you!"

Sousuke, unsure what to say, grabs hold of Kaname's hand, in order to prevent her from running off again.

"What's **that** supposed to mean?"

"I'm not even all that angry about Kyouko hugging you, I know it was platonic, but even still, I felt like it was enough to justify me getting angry at you."

"About what, Kaname?" He lets go of her now, in an attempt to coax her into elaborating.

"How long have we known each other now Sousuke?"

Even though the question was for the most part rhetorical Sousuke could not resist chiming in

"Roughly a year now."

Kaname sighs and shakes her head.

"Yeah, in other words for a while now. In all this time, I realize just how little I know about you. I talk and talk all the time and you just sit there and listen!" She puts her head below his chin to avoid him seeing her tear up again.

" I keep on selfishly going on about my life, my day, my feelings, and yet you don't give me anything to go on." She lightly hits his chest.

"You don't laugh, you don't cry, you just sit there, and I have to sit there and guess at it."

She hits him again.

"I don't expect you to tell me how you feel all the time or anything, but we are in this together dammit! We both should be more honest with each other."

She hits him a third time.

"If your sad, I want to know. If your happy, I want to share in it with you. If your angry, I want to be there for you. Make me feel like I can do something for you for once."

Sousuke just stands there for a while, unsure of how best to respond.

Clueless as to the best course of action, he holds Kaname close, eliciting a further shade of red to color Kaname's cheeks.

"I'm sorry, Kaname."

"Idiot."

Sousuke smirks at this.

"Today I have felt more emotions then I think I have experienced in most of my life. Anxiety over if you were scared of me now this morning, anger over meeting Asimov, unsure over how to make you feel secure once again. Angry after remembering my encounters with Gauron, sad about..."

He pauses at this and pulls Kaname even tighter in.

"I miss my comrades."

Kaname smiles, and buries her face further into Sousuke's chest.

A good 20 minutes pass by before they break apart, and continue on to Sousuke's apartment.

* * *

Author's note:

Jesus Christ I made this 10 times more fluffy near the end then I would have preferred but it actually seemed to fit given the circumstances I put them in. If Kaname seems too out of character for some viewers today, I can only say that the dramatic portion is near its completion for a while. This is probably the most amount of fluff you will see. Thank God. However, once again, I fully believe that this fits. Lets be frank, the girl the few times she has encountered Gauron have been situations that would no doubt leave a bit of a scar. Withdrawing and all that is not much of a surprise. However, her moodswing and shift toward Sousuke's lack of emotional connection to the girl also seems reasonable to me, given that she is (I can only perceive to be) fairly strong willed, and obviously since she cares for Sousuke, gets hurt by the fact that he doesn't open up to her. I'm a dude and I actually get that. Granted I wouldn't cry or some shit over it, but the point remains valid. That might be the one leap in logic in her character I feel might have been a bit much. I'm not sure.

For those of you who didn't get it, (and trust me I wouldn't be surprised or blame you if you didn't) I did make Asimov look a bit like Gauron.

Whether or not there is a reason for this is something I'll leave for you to think about.

Now then, I apologize for the serious time lapse between now and the last time I put up a chapter, life can be an annoying little bitch sometimes, like that kid at the toy shop that won't keep quiet about the new toy he or she wants.

Hopefully with Christmas vacation and what not, I can finally continue on my merry way and actually write a few more chapters for this before life decides to rip me away once again.


End file.
